Woo 2023 job seekers with these top employee benefits and programs

In a competitive talent market, it's more important than ever to know what candidates want. Some of the primary things that your potential hires care about are employer-provided benefits and programs.

These days most people expect some form of retirement account (401K, 403B, etc.), a competitive salary and health insurance, but benefits packages can vary widely.

Each generation places different value levels on benefits. Glassdoor says that Baby Boomers care most about salary, health insurance and their retirement, Gen Xers are concerned about their salary, having a 401K plan with a match, job security, advancement and work life balance and Millennials want benefit choices, paid time off (PTO) and the ability to work remotely and flexibly. It can be hard to strike a balance, but it's important to try.

When was the last time you reviewed the employee benefits and programs you offer? Making certain selections can help position you as an employer of choice and can be the deciding factor when someone is choosing between your company and another.

In this article, we will present some of the top benefits and programs that candidates are searching for in 2023 and beyond so that you can audit your own and potentially add some new ones to the roster.

Reproductive and family support

If you haven't personally been affected by infertility or haven't experienced the adoption process, it can be hard to understand the level of stress each generates. Being a supportive outlet for employees who are either having difficulty conceiving or are actively trying to add to their family via adoption can be an incredibly attractive benefit.

Forbes states that offering financial benefits for fertility treatments, surrogacy and adoption assistance as well as work schedules and paid time off that allow for appointments and other related activities is helpful.

While we won't go into the specific costs for those struggling with conditions like infertility, we will say that they do sometimes prohibit employees who want to build their family from doing so. Employer support with these costs can mean long-term loyalty as employees who receive them feel cared for on a deep level.

Child care

It can be tempting to believe that once your employees win their battles with infertility or adoption, that relief will be in sight, but that's not always the case. When your team members start their families, the need to find reliable, safe care for their children can be extremely challenging.

According to USA TODAY, child care costs between "8% to 19% of a median family’s income per child" in 2023. Some families and individual workers simply can't afford to lose that much of their paychecks.

In addition, there's a major shortage of child care workers. In fact, in the fall of 2022 The New York Times broke a major story about how 100,000 workers in the sector had moved on from the industry.

Enter child care support by employers.

There are several ways employers can support their employees when it comes to child care, but some of the most common ones include partial or full funding and on-site child care services.

Diversity

280 companies including 3M, Adidas, Bank of America and Colgate Palmolive have signed The Hispanic Promise, which is a "national pledge to hire, promote, retain, and celebrate Hispanics in the workplace."

Programs like the one above and others that support historically marginalized populations, transgender individuals and gender equality show your existing workforce and potential hires that you are focused on prioritizing diversity in your workplace. This sort of commitment resonates strongly with job seekers.

In fact, 86% consider diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) in their job search. Furthermore, over 50% would turn down an offer if the company didn't support DEIB.

Companies that make a difference

Environmental issues are an increasingly relevant part of peoples' lives. Per the International Energy Agency (IEA), "Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from energy combustion and industrial processes1 grew 0.9% or 321 Mt in 2022 to a new all-time high of 36.8 Gt." This increase is just one problem plaguing the minds of job seekers.

AON ranked Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) in their Top Priorities for Companies for the Next Five Years in their recent 2022-2023 Global Wellbeing Survey. While it may not seem it at first, your employee well-being can be influenced by global issues and you can help.

Some employers are adapting by aligning their corporate values to the need for a sustainable world.

According to The CEO Magazine, Schnitzer Steel Industries, Vestas Wind Systems, Brambles, Brookfield Renewable Partners, Autodesk, Evoqua Water Technologies, Stantec, Schneider Electric, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, Taiwan High-Speed Rail and Dassault Systèmes are ten of the most sustainable companies in 2023. Companies on this list are doing everything from transforming old production practices and producing renewable energy to offering reusables.

While not every company can easily pull off these kinds of large-scale initiatives, finding small ways to save the world can be a big draw to job seekers. Some ideas from Entrepreneur include using more biodegradables and recyclables, taking stock of your energy sources and buying products locally, when you can.

Flexibility

Millennials, who are a large portion of the current working population, currently value flexibility at a higher rate than money.

The concept of flexibility goes hand-in-hand with some of the other options on our list including allowing team members to leave for certain types of family-based appointments. However, it goes beyond that to include options for work-from-home and hybrid hires.

Remote-work roles can be beneficial to employers and employees alike as they open up the candidate pool. Those with disabilities that prevent them from coming into the office are finding work in increasing numbers these days thanks to the opportunity to work remotely.

Also, people who are seeking affordable housing further away find remote and hybrid options enticing.

A supportive team

Who you work alongside and how they support you matters. Fostering a strong team dynamic that is open and understanding and that also provides documented plans for backup when someone is out of the office is an easy, affordable way to prove your value to employees.

You can make this backup process easier by following some of the simple steps provided by Sprout Social, including giving employees time off tools that are visible to the rest of their team, utilizing project management software to assign work during the time that people are out and ensuring access is granted to relevant tools so that nothing falls through the cracks.

Mentoring

Opportunities for mentoring within your company is always a value-add.

Some companies choose to pair new employees with senior ones to help them learn the ropes, while others might opt to help them source a mentor in the same industry, but at a different, non-competing company.

A third option is to enroll new and existing talent into an established internal group program designed to upskill them. No matter what option you choose, contributing to the continued education of your employees is a win.

Equal pay and pay transparency

The Pew Research Center says that the gender pay gap has been approximately the same for the past 20 years with women earning just 82% of what men earned in 2022. Working toward closing this gap is an important way to show women you want them to work for you.

Some ways The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) suggests include running an initial pay audit, auditing yearly after the first audit, letting employees discuss salaries openly and reviewing job descriptions for language that may discourage female-identifying applicants.

In tandem with these efforts, showing the pay scale on your job listings can help prospective employees decide if they want to pursue the role. Per a recent Inc. article, over 50% of surveyed candidates would be more likely to apply to a role that disclosed the salary initially.

While these aren't traditionally marketed as "benefits" they are highly beneficial practices for employers.

Time off

Vacation, mental health days, paid PTO and leave types should all be considered when building a comprehensive benefits package. Some companies find it easier to create a general bucket of PTO time while others would rather designate specific categories.

No matter what you choose to offer in terms of time off, make sure it's clearly documented and competitive with others in your industry.

Established career tracks

Documented tracks that show how an employee can advance in your company are desirable. This practice provides employees with clear goals as well as milestones (like training) they need to hit to get there. They can even be leveraged in the recruitment process if a candidate is interested in talking about their future outlook.

These are just a few of the many benefits you can offer your employees. Whether you want to lean into health and wellness, financial and retirement, time-off and leave or work-life balance benefits it's important to evaluate them in an ongoing manner.

Choosing to work with Beacon Hill will give you access to time-tested recruitment professionals who can help you appeal to all kinds of job seekers. Let us help you fill your pipeline with the right talent at the right time. Partner with us today.

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